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Maryland responses to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
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States employ a variety of processes to apply for and administer federal grants. Ballotpedia's 2021 state survey of the federal grant review process examined the general processes applied by the 50 states in order to seek and distribute federal funds.
Research from the Pew Charitable Trusts found that federal funds made up 32% (roughly $639 billion) of all state revenue in 2017, making them the second-largest source of state revenue behind state tax collections.[1] States direct federal funds to government programs related to education, healthcare, transportation, infrastructure, and other policies.[1]
This page features Maryland's responses to Ballotpedia's 2021 survey.
Background
From August 5, 2021, to September 27, 2021, Ballotpedia staff contacted the executive and legislative budget offices of all 50 states via email and/or telephone to update a publicly available 2016 survey on state approaches to the federal grant review process.
Our staff contacted state officials with the following survey questions:
- Approval processes for federal grants
- What is your state’s process for federal grant applications and the approval process?
- What is your state’s approval process when the legislature is not in session?
- How does the legislature monitor the intent of federal grants? What legislative rules allow the state greater oversight of federal funds in the budgets?
- Contingency plans for the loss or decline of federal funds
- What is your state’s contingency plan in the case of a decline or loss of federal funds?
- Quality control processes for federal grants
- What is your state’s quality control process for tracking the effectiveness of federal funds?
- Does your state attempt to estimate the cost of federal fund requirements? If so, how?
- How does your state prioritize federal funds to best meet the needs of constituents?
- If your state doesn’t appropriate key federal funds like food stamps and unemployment benefits, are your state’s federal funds off-budget? How do you track this information?
Our staff also contacted state officials with the following two new survey questions regarding federal funds made available in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic:
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic funds
- Who has decision rights over American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations in your state?
- Who has decision rights over Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund allocations in your state?
Maryland 2021 survey responses
What is your state’s process for federal grant applications and the approval process?
“Funding associated with federal grants must be appropriated and included in the budget. The budget books which are part of the Governor's proposed budget includes relevant federal fund detail (CFDA codes). This would fall broadly under State Finance and Procurement (SFP) 7-108(a)(5) which requires the Governor to include all appropriations for the Executive branch of State Government.
"SFP 2-203 also requires information on federal aid (encompassing all types of federal revenue) to be submitted to the Maryland Department of Planning.
"The legislature does not participate in the application process (which is the preserve of the Executive branch) with one specific exception. SFP 2-202 requires the Governor to consult with the General Assembly before the State participates in a federal block grant. That section specifically requires review by the Legislative Policy Committee.”
What is the approval process when the legislature is not in session?
“Federal funds can be appropriated through budget amendments SFP 7-209 with additional qualifications added through annual budget bill language (see for example, Section 30 of Chapter 143 of 2016 (the Fiscal Year 2017 budget bill).”
How does the legislature monitor the intent of federal grants?
“The legislature monitors the intent of federal grants through its oversight of the regular budget (staff prepared budget analyses and public presentations on agency budgets as part of the budget deliberation process) as well as its review of budget amendments. To the extent that the legislature adds annual budget language on the oversight of budget amendments generally (although not just for federal funds) that language provides an enhanced level of legislative oversight.”
What is your state’s contingency plan for state financing in the case of losses or decline in federal funds?
“Calculations on the impact of a potential decline or loss of federal funds to the extent that it would require State funds to replace the federal funds is a part of the legislative baseline budget process (which seeks to estimate what the cost of providing ongoing government services will be in the upcoming fiscal year) as well as the Executive budget process. If lost revenues occur after the legislative Session for the current fiscal year and/or the following fiscal year, the Governor can back-fill through deficiency appropriations that are included in the subsequent Session's budget bill. The Governor also has the ability, under certain circumstances, to transfer funds from the Revenue Stabilization Account (Rainy Day Fund) or the Dedicated Purpose Account to make up for lost revenues if that revenue loss was suspected but not known for certain when the budget was considered (see SFP 7-310 and 7-311). For example, a couple of years ago based on uncertainty around the federal budget (which ultimately resulted in cuts to certain discretionary grants) funding was appropriated to the Dedicated Purpose Account specifically to back-fill for potential losses.”
What is your state’s quality control process for tracking the effectiveness of federal funds?
“Through the budget oversight process. I would note that SFP 2-204 used to include a provision requiring an evaluation of federal aid, but this provision was repealed in 1997 (along with many other reporting provisions throughout the Annotated Code) that were considered obsolete.”
Does your state attempt to estimate the cost of federal fund requirements? If so, how?
“To the extent that there are federal matching requirements that is part of the legislative and executive budget review process.”
How does your state prioritize federal funds to best meet the needs of constituents?
“Through the budget oversight process.”
If your state does not appropriate key federal funds like food stamps and unemployment benefits, are your state’s federal funds off budget? How do you track this information?
“N/A.”
Who has decision rights over American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations in your state?
"For the State Fiscal Relief Funds, the General Assembly and Governor reached an agreement for how the spending was to be allocated and spent."
Who has decision rights over Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund allocations in your state?
"The The Maryland State Department of Education created a spend plan that was approved by the State Board of Education. That plan was then sent to the Department of Budget and Management to go through the normal budget process."
Other state survey responses
Click on a state below to view its responses to the 2021 survey on the federal grant review process:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
See also
- State survey of the federal grant review process, 2021
- State responses to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
- State responses by question to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
- Federalism
External links
Footnotes
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